The Student Counselling and Mental Health Advice Service offers therapeutic consultations to all registered students at Imperial College London. From this, students can be offered further counselling with the service. It is free and confidential. To make an appointment to meet with a counsellor, students can register with the service through the website. The service also has two student mental health advisers (SMHA).

Students need to be referred by a member of College staff, with the student’s permission, in order to be seen by the SMHA. The SMHA is unable to take self-referrals from students or their family and friends.

The service also offers consultation with staff who are concerned about a student’s wellbeing. Without the student’s consent, this conversation must be kept anonymous to honour the student’s confidentiality.

Wellbeing for students

Professor Wright on some of the issues affecting PhD student

In the next video, we asked Professor Denis Wright, Department of life Sciences, to talk about his role within College and some of the issues affecting PhD students.

Professor Wright on some of the issues affecting PhD student

Professor Wright on some of the issues affecting PhD students

In the next video, we asked Professor Denis Wright, Department of life Sciences, to talk about his role within College and some of the issues affecting PhD students.

The provision available to non-native speaking students.

The provision available to non-native speaking students.

Dr Julie King, Director, Centre for Academic English, Imperial College London, talks about the services provided by the Centre for Academic English to support non-native speaking students.

Crisis Management

Crisis management

Crisis management

Should an emergency occur at weekends or out-of-hours, supervisors should inform Security (+44 (0)20 759 48910 or internal x 4444) who in turn will involve the College Senior Tutor. Should the emergency occur in the lab then the department’s Health and Safety Manager and possibly the Building Manager should be consulted. Outside agencies such as the police or an ambulance should not be called directly by supervisors.

There may be a rare occasion when a student in crisis (and possibly suicidal) turns to you for help. During working hours you should immediately inform the Senior Tutor (PGR). You can also direct the student torelevant College services.

Mental health-related crisis

Mental health-related crisis

Mental health-related crisis

The College’s Mental Health Difficulties Protocolgives detailed and valuable advice on how to deal with a crisis situation where a student is suffering from severe mental health difficulties. It is important to listen to the student, give them support and inform them of the relevant services.

Responding to a mental health emergency

If you encounter a situation where a student poses an immediate risk of harm to themselves, eg, where a student reports deliberate self-harm with a clear and/or immediate risk of suicide, or indicates a significant risk of harm to others, this is an emergency situation that requires immediate action and the involvement of other colleagues.

Depending on the situation, you should contact one or more of the following:

Imperial College Health Centre on extension 49375 /49376 (or 020 7584 6301). Tell the receptionist that the situation is urgent and you need to speak with the Duty Doctor.

Emergency Services via College Security on extension 4444 or 020 7589 1000, giving your name, the student’s name, your contact telephone number and exact location. College Security will also provide you with additional support in managing the situation.

If an incident takes place in a lab, you may need to contact the Departmental Health and Safety Manager or Building Manager as necessary.

Do not leave the student alone until help has arrived. Note that is not necessary for you to accompany the student in the ambulance to hospital.

As soon as is reasonably possible you should also inform your Departmental Senior Tutor (PGR) and/or the Faculty Senior Tutor (as appropriate).

With circumstances that give rise to serious concern about a student, but do not constitute an emergency, you should refer to the Mental Health Difficulties Protocol for full details of the support available to students and who you can contact for additional advice and information.

Support for Non-Native Speaking Students

Centre for Academic English

The Centre for Academic English (CfAE) offers a range of free courses at all levels to help all PhD students, both native and non-native speakers,, communicate their research as accurately and professionally as possible. The Centre’s provision also includes courses that focus on enhancing students’ ability to present their work with more impact in the wider academic community, particularly in relation to publications and conference papers.

All new postgraduate research students who are not native speakers of English must fulfil the Imperial College London Postgraduate English Requirement (PGR) as soon as possible after fully registering onto their PhD programme. This requirement is separate from, and in addition to, meeting the College entry requirements (IELTS, TOEFL, etc). Students should take the first available initial assessment (English Assessment 1), and, on the basis of the outcome of this assessment, particular writing classes are recommended. For those students who score either Level 1 or Level 2, a further assessment (English Assessment 2) at the ESA stage is conducted in order to ascertain their progress and whether they still need more support with their writing from the CfAE.

English language courses and consultations offered by the CfAE include:

PhD technical speaking courses

Listening and speaking courses

Communicating Science Successfully sessions One-to-one consultations:

Postgraduate Student Representation

Postgraduate student representation

Each department will have a research student representative network. Additionally, each Faculty has its own Postgraduate Staff-Student Committee.

Alcohol and Drugs

Alcohol and drugs

Your student, or a friend of theirs, might disclose substance misuse to you or you might spot signs yourself.

Signs of substance misuse (eg alcohol dependency, the abuse of prescribed drugs and the use of illegal drugs) include:

Worsening health;

Missing tutorials, being absent from the lab / office;

Consistently achieving less than expected;

Deteriorating concentration, lack of judgement, inability to make decisions;

Unpredictable or inappropriate behaviour;

Relationship problems;

Worsening appearance - looking tired, messy etc.;

Not admitting to the negative issues associated with substance misuse;

Problems with money.

(Thanks to Reading University for source material for these points)

What should you do?

If a student discloses to you, listen to the student’s concerns and help them to find the right sources of support and guidance.

If you suspect there might be a problem, contact the student and ask them to meet with you to explore whether they are OK. You might need to chase them up. At this meeting you might explain the benefits of seeking help and refer them to relevant sources of support and guidance.

Harassment, Victimisation and Bullying

Zero tolerance to bullying and harassment

Imperial is committed to promoting a university environment where everyone is treated with respect and courtesy.

We all have our part to play in showing respect for others. This involves discouraging harassment, bullying and victimisation by making it clear that such behaviour is unacceptable, and supporting those who suffer from it and who are considering making a formal complaint.

The College’s Harassment, Bullying and Victimisation Policy on these issues frames them unequivocally as serious matters which are not acceptable and must be dealt with firmly. These behaviours can happen between students and between a student and a staff member.

There can be a gradation, starting with unpleasant and rude behaviour, going through to very serious and even criminal behaviour and anyone investigating a case will need to determine where on the spectrum the problem stands. The policy indicates that if a student feels harassed, bullied or victimised, he or she should seek advice immediately, either from the Imperial College Union Advice Centre or from someone such as a Senior Tutor (PGR).

If you are involved in one of these cases as a supervisor, the first thing to do is listen and be supportive. The student is likely to be hurt, vulnerable and anxious.

Investigations may be carried out by a Head of Department or another senior member of College staff, depending on the circumstances. Even if a case is investigated, mediation is the preferred way of dealing with the outcome, but disciplinary measures will be used if necessary.

Health

Health

All students are encouraged to register with a local NHS doctor (GP) as soon as possible. Information on finding a doctor can be found on the Student Space website.

If you notice a change in a student’s physical appearance that might suggest that they are unwell, you are encouraged to have a confidential conversation with them based on your observations. For example, you could say, “I notice that you look unusually tired. Are you feeling OK?”

If a student is absent and does not respond to an email enquiring as to their wellbeing and whereabouts, advise your Senior Tutor (PGR).

More health advice for students can be found at Imperial Student Space's health pages.

Relationships and Family

Relationships and family

Problems at home or within relationships can put great pressure on students and distract them from their work. The most helpful thing you can do is listen, without making assumptions, and give the student time and space to air their concerns. Then ask them what they want to do about the issue, if anything, and how you could be of assistance, to avoid falling into the trap of giving your student your solution to their problem.

You should not share any information about an Imperial student outside the College, without their explicit written consent.

Imperial can offer a range of support to those students having spent at least 3 months in local authority care, which may include foster care, or living in a residential care home. You can access further information on the range of support available on the Care Leavers webpages.

Sexual Assault

Sexual violence

Sexual violence can happen to anyone regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, class or background. If a student discloses to you that they have experienced sexual violence, it is important that you listen to them in an open and non-judgemental way. You should reassure the student that there is support available at the College and through external specialist services. Allow the student to guide you as to what kind of support they want from you.

Imperial has a team of Sexual Violence Liaison Officers (SVLOs) who can provide students with confidential care 1-2-1 support and information. You should let the student know about the availability of support through the SVLOs, although it is completely up to the student whether they choose to use the service.

Transition and Culture Shock

Transition and culture shock

Settling into life at Imperial can be challenging for any student and may be even more so for those also getting used to life in the UK. The links to ideas and resources below should be useful when supporting your students with this process:

Information from the UK Council for International Student Affairs on culture shock;